Local Buzz

Ideal Agent, a Tampa-based real estate services company, has partnered with SME Solutions Group, also in Tampa, to create a new technology infrastructure for its business. The new technology will assist Ideal Agent on its digital transformation, and artificial intelligence, to scale its business, reduce expenses and improve the company’s customer experience, according to a

Links Golf, in Tampa, has acquired Sugarmill Woods Country Club, Southern Woods Golf Club and Oak Village Bath and Tennis Club, from Cabot Group of Canada. Links Golf is led by Scott Yates, a 30-year PGA Member/Club Pro and his wife, Penny Parks. Yates has served as the department head, head golf professional and general

Encore Bank, based in Little Rock, Arkansas, launched a new business line, Association Banking by Encore, and named Patti DuBuque executive vice president and director of association banking. DuBuque, a 25-year community association executive and banking veteran, will be responsible for establishing, and leading, Encore’s association banking division, which will provide specialized deposit and lending

Miami-based Related Group, along with the Tampa Housing Authority, celebrated its groundbreaking at its latest Tampa project, Canopy at West River. The event commemorated Related Urban’s most recent milestone in the redevelopment project, which will result in a 150-acre mixed-income community. Once complete, the project will consist of two towers with 196 public, affordable and

The Floridan Palace Hotel will be joining the Tapestry Collection by Hilton brand. As part of the rebranding process, the 212-room property, located at 905 N. Florida Avenue, Tampa, will undergo a $25 million renovation, according to a statement. 1754 Properties, the South Florida-based owner and operator of the property, named Jane Finkel Levin, president

Twenty-nine Tampa Bay area professionals have been tapped to join the next class of Leadership Florida. Created in 1982 by the Florida Chamber of Commerce, Leadership Florida seeks to build a sense of statewide community by identifying, and educating, individuals who show promise to be leaders in their respective communities. As part of the program,

Local officials and founder of Walk-On’s Sports, Brandon Landry, gathered to celebrate the Grand Opening of the latest restaurant to open at Midtown Tampa. Over the weekend, Walk-On’s charitable partner, Feeding Tampa Bay, raised more than $12,050.00. This restaurant marks its 8th location in Florida and the second in the Tampa Bay area. The other

Kristin Tomasello, chief operating officer of the nonprofit Remarkable Reasons, based in Palm Harbor, is preparing for the Miss Florida competition this Saturday, June 25. As the current Miss South Florida, she already wears a crown, but has ambition for a few more. First Miss Florida, then Miss America. All the while, it’s her commitment

Miami-based Choeff Levy Fischman Architecture + Design has opened a Tampa office, at 2023 W. Platt Street, Suite 104. The firm is known for designing luxury, waterfront single-family homes in South Florida for executives, celebrities and professional athletes such as Giovani Bernard, Asdrúbal Cabrera and Alex Rodriguez, according to a statement. Choeff Levy Fischman has

Leadership Tampa, a program of the Tampa Bay Chamber, celebrated the graduation of 46 members of the class of 2022 on June 1, 2022, at the Steinbrenner Field, in Tampa. The 2022 class marks the 51st class to graduate from the leadership program, established in 1971. Members of Leadership Tampa are local business leaders who

Shumaker Partner M. John Burgess has been named president of the Florida West Coast Employee Benefits Council, for its 2021-2022 season. Burgess has also served as second vice president of FWCEBC since 2019. FWCEBC provides an educational, and networking, forum for employee benefits professionals in the Tampa Bay area. Focused on employee benefit plans, Burgess

Bunker Labs is hosting a live Veterans in Residence Showcase, featuring over 400 entrepreneurs across 23 cities. The biannual event celebrates military-affiliated entrepreneurs launching startups, or growing their businesses, after six months of participating in Bunker Labs’ Veterans in Residence program. Bunker Labs is an organization that provides community, programs and resources to help Veteran